Israeli strikes killed 20 people in Lebanon’s ancient city of Baalbek and the towns around it on Saturday, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
Baalbek, in northeastern Lebanon, has increasingly come under attack as the Israeli military expands its campaign against the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Dozens of people have been killed and most of the city’s population has fled.
The Israeli military said it struck “Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure sites” near the port city of Tyre and near Baalbek on Saturday.
Lebanon’s health ministry cited five separate deadly incidents, including one in which 11 people were killed. In a statement on Saturday night, it added that 14 people were wounded. The ministry gave few details of the attacks and did not say whether the casualties were civilians or Hezbollah fighters.
Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah was initially focused on southern Lebanon, with the stated aim of crippling the militant group’s ability to fire rockets across the border into Israel. But the military operations have in recent weeks expanded to include cities and towns across Lebanon, including places far from that border — like Baalbek.
Hezbollah’s cross-border attacks have persisted even as Israel’s campaign has intensified. The group fired 70 projectiles — likely missiles or drones — across the frontier on Saturday and 10 on Sunday, according to Israel’s military. Many were intercepted by Israel’s air defenses or fell in open areas, it said.
The fighting has driven around one fifth of Lebanon’s population of around 5.3 million from their homes, according to the Lebanese government.
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